St. Moritz: Kostelic savors hot streak, but still has her doubts

St. Moritz: Kostelic savors hot streak, but still has her doubts{mosimage}ST. MORITZ, Switzerland – Janica Kostelic always has doubts when she starts a race – even after a record-setting week.

Kostelic, who last week became the first woman to claim wins in six different World Cup disciplines, said it was like starting from scratch at this week’s races in Switzerland.

”You know I’m really never sure, even when I ski good, that I can do it again,” Kostelic told The Associated Press after Wednesday’s opening training session was canceled by high winds. ”All I can do is see what happens on race day.”

It’s been a breathtaking three weeks for the triple Olympic champion. The 24-year-old claimed her first World Cup downhill win on Saturday, followed by her first super G victory the following day. She posted her first giant slalom win just before the December holiday break in the Czech town of Spindleruv Myln.

”My (career) goal was to win all four and I was really surprised because it happened all at once,” said Kostelic, who had already won 17 World Cup slalom races. ”I waited for the GS for seven years and then it happened. I thought downhill and super G would take even longer. So when everything happened in two days it was pretty surprising.”

Kostelic won the downhill at last year’s World Championships and the giant slalom at the Olympics – but had never won either the World Cup circuit.

Among her 24 World Cup wins, Kostelic now has captured all five main disciplines: giant slalom, downhill, slalom, super G and combined. Only two other women have accomplished that feat, Sweden’s Pernilla Wiberg and Austria’s Petra Kronberger.

But Kostelic also owns a win in the new super combi race, taking the first one when it was held last February in San Sicario, Italy.

The women’s first training session ahead of Saturday’s downhill and Sunday’s super-combi was canceled because of high winds on the upper part of the course. Friday’s super G does not require a training run.

”The upper jump was not possible to ski,” Kostelic said.

This season, Kostelic has won in three disciplines: downhill, super G and giant slalom.

Sunday marks the first super combi this year and a win there would bring her a step closer to becoming only the third skier to win five events in a single season.

In slalom – her specialty – she has been on the podium in every race this season and second three times.

Only Kronberger and Luxembourg’s Marc Girardelli have won downhill, super G, giant slalom, slalom and at least one sort of combined event in a single season.

”She is the best at the moment,” said her father and coach, Ante Kostelic. ”Now, who is the best next week or even tomorrow and after tomorrow we don’t know. This sport of alpine skiing changes a lot, each day.”